Artist Found On Stairs Dead: Jorge Selarón Sets Self On Fire After Threats From Friend, Paulo Sergio Rabelo [Video]

An artist was found dead where his artwork is displayed after setting himself on fire in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Chilean native, Jorge Selaron had adopted Brazil as his second home and his colorful stairs were declared city patrimony in 2005 and Selaron was made an honorary carioca.

According to homicide police chief Renata Araujo, the charred body was found near a can of paint thinner, which was used to fuel the flames. Eight people close to the artist said that he was deeply depressed from threats made by a former friend and collaborator, Paulo Sergio Rabelo and asked people for assistance in killing himself, "He even asked to be taken to the subway so he could throw himself under the train," Araujo said.

After Selaron reported the threats to the police, the artist was known for keeping friends over his home for safety. Although threats were considered, the autopsy had shown that Selaron had doused himself by pouring the flammable liquid on his head. The night before his death, the artist had decided to sleep in his home alone, "This could be an indication that he was determined to kill himself," she added, "He could have poured the thinner on his own body inside the house, then to protect his work and die on the staircase, he could have walked out and set himself on fire."

The well-known artist and Rabelo had parted ways when he had gotten into several fights with associates while he was on vacation last November. When Selaron found out he ended his friendship with Rabelo and that's when the threats ensued. The threats escalated when Rabelo attacked Selaron's closest friends and filed a report with police on Nov. 24. Rabelo denied the accusations of making threats to the artist according, to police.

 Before his death, "Today I slept in a hotel because these last few days I've been threatened by Paulo, who is still my heir," he wrote on the recurring drawing. "He intends to take control of the sales of my paintings. I said no, this won't happen until I die. He didn't like it." The artist added, "In the last 20 days, he lost control entirely," Selaron wrote.